Health Benefits of Natural Yeast
Guest blog by Caleb Warnock, author of The Art of Baking with Natural Yeast: Breads, Pancakes, Waffles, Cinnamon Rolls and Muffins and the national bestseller Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency Used by the Mormon Pioneers.

© 2012 Caleb Warnock. The contents of this blog post are not in the public domain and may not be used without the express written permission of the author.                    

Few people realize that the yeast in grocery stores is not a naturally-occurring substance. Laboratory created in 1984, the yeast sold today is so foreign to our digestive systems that some people develop allergies to the yeast itself. This quick-rising yeast appears increasingly connected to the nutritional and digestive disorders that plague so many. Natural yeast flattens the glycemic index, takes away heartburn and acid reflux forever, helps prevent or reverse gluten intolerance and, in some cases, full-blown Celiac’s disease, turns natural phytic acid into an anti-oxidant, controls allergies, and turns flour into a yeast that is both pre-biotic and pro-biotic.

Beyond health benefits, natural yeast is simple to use, costs nothing, tastes wonderful, completely cuts out the need to buy commercial yeast, and drastically reduces the need for baking powder and baking soda. You can easily use it not only to make bread, but also waffles, pancakes, breadsticks, pizza dough, scones, rolls, and even old-fashioned root beer.



Yeast is a single-celled fungus, and the first domesticated living creature in history. Modern science has identified more than 1,000 different varieties of wild yeast. These organisms are so small that hundreds of millions, if not billions, fit into a single teaspoon.

Wild yeast is everywhere -- in the air you breathe, on the bark of trees, on leaves. Ever seen the white film on backyard grapes? That’s wild yeast. The same film can be found of juniper berries. For centuries, both berries have been used as natural “start” for bread yeast.

But not all yeast varieties are the same. For example, the kind of yeast used to make beer is not the same kind of yeast used to make bread. Different natural yeasts have different flavors -- some are strongly sour, some are mildly sour, and some are not sour at all. Natural yeast is sometimes mistakenly referred to as sourdough, but with the right strain of yeast, it doesn’t have to be sour unless that is the flavor you prefer. Some natural yeasts are better are raising bread than others. This is why the best strains of natural yeast has been passed down through generations and communities. Hundreds of people around the nation have gotten free, non-sour natural yeast starts from me.

Until the 19th century, homemade yeast was the only kind there was. In 1857 Louis Pasteur discovered that living organisms -- yeasts -- were responsible for fermentation. Yeast was already an important business, even though no one had understood how it worked. The production of commercial yeast began in France in the 1850s. In the U.S., compressed yeast cakes were introduced to the nation at Philadelphia’s Centennial Exposition in 1876 , which drew 10 million visitors. When America entered World War II, yeast companies developed dry yeast for the military which did not require refrigeration. And then in 1984, rapid-rising yeast was invented in U.S. laboratories.

Today that yeast has all but replaced natural yeast. But not everyone is convinced that the convenience of super-fast yeast outweighs the health benefits of the slow rising process of natural yeast.

A word of caution. If you type “sourdough starter” into Google, you will get hundreds of recipes for starting “sourdough” from commercial yeast. But very little grocery store yeast is now true natural yeast. The best way to get real natural yeast is from someone using a documented strain. The author, Caleb Warnock, mails flakes of natural “sweet” yeast to anyone who requests them at no charge, along with instructions for growing out the yeast. And once you have a start of natural yeast, you can have it for the rest of your life. You can dry it, freeze it, keep it in the fridge, or grow it on your kitchen counter. To get a start of the author’s documented 200-year-old strain of natural yeast, send an email to calebwarnock.yahoo.com.

Here is the link to my blog, and you can click on the cover of the new cookbook to look inside the book. Not to press my luck, but if you order two copies, the shipping is FREE!

CalebWarnock.blogspot.com 

Side note: Caleb is a great friend of the Jolleys. We are so pleased to share his new book with you and hope that you find MANY healthy recipes to enrich your life and make it yummier!

Zucchini Relish 

Finally! It’s time for another Healthy recipe! It’s been a busy summer. It is now time to enjoy the benefits of harvesting our garden. One of our favorite recipe finds for zucchini is this relish. We honestly prefer it above all others, and sometimes even replace pickles with it. This is a definite keeper!

Zucchini Relish

10 Cups ground zucchini

4 cups chopped white onion (use a yellow onion if you like it a bit more sweet

2 cups chopped green bell pepper

2 cups chopped red bell pepper

5 Tblsp salt

Optional: outer meat 1 jalepano pepper 

Syrup:

3 cups sugar

2 ½ cups cider vinegar

1 Tblsp turmeric

2 tsp celery seed

1 Tblsp dried mustard

1 Tblsp corn starch

1 Tblsp black pepper

Combine zucchini, onion and bell pepper in a large roaster pan and sprinkle with the salt. Cover with water and let sit in refrigerator for at least 3 hrs or overnight. Next rinse and drain well. Return mixture to roaster pan.

In a large bowl, combine all syrup ingredients.  Pour over zucchini mixture and stir.  Bring to boil; lower heat and simmer 30 minutes. Do not boil.  Transfer to pint jars, wipe rims of jars and then seal with screw-band and lid immediately.  I use a steam bath. Once water is boiling, steam for 10-15min @ full boil. Allow to cool 30 min. before lifting canner lid. Lift slowly. Place jars on towel and cover with another towel. Listen for the neat little pop which means the jar has sealed.  Store in a dark, cool pantry.  If the center of the lid is not indented when jars are cool, that means it did not seal Refrigerate those jars.  Makes approx. 10 jars.

Recipe in part by: 101 Things to do with Zucchini, altered a bit by Debie Jolley

  

Healthy Recipe Day! - Avocados in ways you've not experienced!

Dr. Jolley loves all of his food made from scratch as much as possible and is an amazing chef when it comes to making his own.

For Father’s Day I decide to make him homemade Fajitas. Lately I’ve been on a health kick myself. As I contemplated buying the guacamole from the store (to save time) I looked at the ingredient list. The prominent ingredient was ‘canola oil.’ Yuck! I knew I could do better, so I determined to buy the avocados fresh and make my own. Finding a good recipe was hard, so I ended up combining two and ad-libbing for this amazing result!

Guacamole to die for Recipe – and yes it is healthy!

2 medium very ripe avocados (soft to touch, but not blackened inside)

½ of a small onion, cut up

1 clove of garlic minced

¼ cup fresh cilantro

1 Tblsp Fresh lemon juice

¼ tsp salt

1 medium tomato diced

(optional) ½ cup sour cream 

Cut avocados in half and remove pits. Scoop out the flesh and place in blender. Place all ingredients into the container. Secure the lid select variable slow speed and then increase to medium. Run for 15-30 sec. Leave slightly chunky but mostly smooth.

Makes about 2 cups

Keeping reading to the end of this post for the Health Benefits!

Enjoy!

Avocado Shake Recipe

This is popular in Brazil and other warm climate countries.

As avocados are a fruit and not a vegetable, this combination makes perfect sense. The flavor is subtle and very addictive! The recipe is lightened up for less calories. It is so good! Give it a try and see what you think. (Definitely not a guacamole taste.)

Yields: 2 servings
Prep time: 5 min

Ingredients:

1 rip avocado, peeled and pitted*
2 cups ice (16 to 20 ice cubes)
1/2 cup< fat-free sweetened condensed milk
1/2 to 1 cup cold non-fat milk**

* The best avocados to use are those that gently yield to pressure and are free from dark blotches inside the fruit.

** Depending on how large the avocado is and how thick you want your shake.

Preparation:

Scoop the avocado flesh into a blender. Add the ice cubes, condensed milk, the least amount of non-fat milk; puree until completely smooth. Taste and add additional milk if a thinner consistency is desired. NOTE: I like to use the maximum amount of milk.

Pour into two (2) tall glasses and enjoy!

Makes 2 servings.

I  Love the ice cream version: 

1/2 large Avocado (take off outer shell and pit)

1 ½ Cups Low fat Ice Cream

1/2 cup of sugar

½ cup milk 

Blend together on high until smooth

Makes 2 servings

Recipe source: Whatscooking America.net

About Avocados

Many people dismiss the health benefits of avocado simply due to its high calorie count. With 322 calories per avocado it is quite high in calories, but that’s not the entire story. Avocados have 54% of your recommended daily value of fiber, which gives this fruit much of its fat burning abilities.

Sometimes called the alphabet fruit because just one avocado provides your body with vitamins A, C, E, K and B6 so you can be sure you’re getting plenty of body nourishments with each bite. Other vitamins found in relatively large quantities in an avocado include riboflavin, niacin, foliate and pantothenic acid.

When you’re looking for avocado nutrition facts, pay close attention to potassium because one avocado has 975 mg.

It’s important to note that the outer dark green skin of the avocado is inedible, as is the huge pit in the center. Halve an avocado and remove the seed prior to eating. Slice & scoop or simply scoop out the yummy green center!

Health Benefits of Avocados

The foliate contained in avocados is mostly responsible for reducing the risk of heart disease, especially compared to people who have a diet low in foliate. The vitamin E in an avocado has also been linked to a healthy heart, something needed to keep you successfully burning fat all day long.

Another health benefit of avocado is that it is extremely helpful in preventing both rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. The many different antioxidants found in avocados help reduce inflammation, a major concern for sufferers of either type of arthritis. Avocado nutrients responsible for this health benefit include vitamins C & E as well as manganese.

Perhaps the biggest health benefit of avocados is that by adding avocado to certain foods, you can improve your absorption of nutrients. This means that when you combine other fat burning foods with avocado, you can improve your nutrient absorption up to 400%!

Avocados provide many general health benefits, in addition to its fat burning benefits due to its vitamin E and glutathione, which protects you against tons of diseases including several forms of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and cholesterol.

Avocados also help reduce the signs of aging, regulate blood sugar and promote eye health.

Health Benefits Source: http://www.fatburningfurnace.com/blog/avocado-nutrition-facts

Healthy Recipe Thursday. Homemade Bread!

When I married Dr. Jolley, he would make the most delicious homemade bread! Yes Dr. Jolley can cook! While I claim to be a great cook, bread making was not something I had ventured out to yet. After all a lot can go wrong, right? Not with this recipe. Dr. Jolley had me give it a try and wala! I would dare say this is a no fail recipe and easy to follow. I've been making this bread for 9 years now. People think I'm an expert at bread making lol. (I'll introduce you to the real Bread Expert in August with some exciting stuff!) Anyhow, the staff always gets excited when I bring a hot loaf of my bread into the office. Here's the secret recipe ~

 

The Jolley’s Famous Bread

100 % Whole Wheat Bread 

Prep Time:  45 min.              Baking Time:  40 min.

Rising Time:  30-60 min.               Oven Temp.  350º F

Makes FOUR Loaves

5 cups warm water (105-115º F)

2T or pkgs active dry yeast

2/3 cup Honey or Molasses

2/3 cup oil

2T Salt

3T Dough Enhancer

½ cup Vital Wheat Gluten

3 cups Rolled Oats

12-13 cups Whole Wheat Flour

(Grind 8 cups of grain) 

Preparation

1-   Heat Water to 110 º F

2-   Grind wheat (8cups of grain)

3-   Measure oil, pour into a separate bowl.

4-   Use the same cup to measure molasses.

5-   Place warm water, yeast & molasses into a large mixing bowl.

6-   Stir until all is dissolved and let stand in a warm place until raises up and bubbly.

7-   Mix in Vital wheat gluten, Dough enhancer, oil & salt.  Speed #1 on mixer (Slow)

8-   Add oats

9-   Mix in flour 1c. at a time. Up to 10 cups, 1^st Slow speed (#2) then (#4) when thick.

10-W/ last cups of flour, dump on counter & on top of dough.  Knead for 10 min.  Div. into 4 loaves

     11- Place into bread pans and let rise.

    Place towel over loaves while rising

     12- When dough has nearly doubled. Place in preheated oven and bake.      Makes 4 loaves

When bread comes out of oven, rub butter across top of loaf and let cool on cooling rack with a towel placed over it. 

Enjoy with honey or jam! Makes great sandwiches too! 

 

Grilled Fruit with Strawberry Dip

With the upcoming holiday weekend, grilling is once again on our mind. I thought this recipe sounded too good to pass up and no one will know you were trying to throw something healthy into your meal! lol

You can actually use any “in season” fruit that you think would taste great.

Ingredients:

Sauce ~

8 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese

2 Tblsp plain nonfat yogurt

¼ tsp dried, ground ginger

8 Strawberries, halved

Fruit to grill ~

4 peaches, halved or quartered

8 chunks pineapple

4 plums, nectarines, or papayas,halved

¼ cup balsamic vinegar (apple cider will do)

2 tsp granulated sugar

Instructions:

·        In a blender puree cheese, yogurt, ginger, and strawberries together until smooth. Refrigerate for two hours before grilling fruit.

·        When ready to grill fruit, thread pieces of prepared fruit onto eight skewers. Mix together vinegar and sugar. Grill fruit until lightly browned, turning frequently and brushing with vinegar mixture during grilling.

·        Serve grilled fruit with sauce on side.

As Always, ENJOY! and Happy Memorial Day!

Better than Tucano’s Rice and Beans

Here is our ‘Healthy Recipe’ for the week. Both Dr. Jolley and his wife served missions among the Latin people. Rice and Beans are a healthy and delicious addition to any meal as well as a family favorite. We have had many requests for this recipe, so we decided to feature it in this week’s ‘Healthy Recipe.’

RICE

If cooking white rice –

Boil 1 ½ cups of water  for every cup of white rice.

(ie 3cups of water and 2 cups of dry white rice will serve 4 people)

Add ½ Tblsp. butter to the boiling water than add rice.

Place heat on low, cover pan with lid and cook for 20min.

If cooking Brown rice –

Boil 2 ½ cups of water for every cup of Brown rice.

(this will also serve 4 people)

Add 1 tblsp of butter to boiling water than add rice.

Place heat on low, cover pan with lid and cook for 45min.

You can serve rice plain with beans or you can jazz it up. Add a bouillon cube (chicken or beef) to the boiling water just before adding rice. Sometimes I also like to add a dash of ‘Mrs. Dash’ to the rice for flavor. You can also add basil, oregano or any spice you like to the rice after it is cooked to give it a little more flavor and add a splash of color. 
Optional – You can saute and add ½ cup green and/or red pepper chopped.

BEANS

You can use this recipe for Black or Pinto Beans

I learned from my Brazilian neighbor that using a Crockpot is faster and easier than a pressure cooker. A Crockpot is cheaper to buy and will give you many more uses. It takes the ‘pain’ out of cooking dry beans, which are much healthier and more delicious than canned.

This recipe is so easy! Just requires a little planning to start it on time.

8 cups of water

2 ½ cups of beans (pinto or black) = 16oz bag of beans.

1cup of chopped onion or rehydrate 2 Tblsp of dry onion

4 garlic cloves, minced

¼ cup of oil (olive or canola) –for sautéing onions and garlic

2 tsp oregano

2 tsp salt

¼ cup Cider vinegar

¼ tsp ground pepper

¼ tsp of dry mint leaves (Brazilian secret)


Place Crockpot on High

Add 8 cups of water

2 ½ cups of beans (pinto or black)

For Pinto beans cook on high for 4-6 hours (the longer you cook, the less gas they will create)

For Black beans cook on high for 12-18 hours ( you’ll know either black or pinto beans are done cooking when they are swollen and very soft.)

When beans are soft and done. Place Crockpot on low.

Saute onions and garlic in oil. Then add to beans

Add remaining ingredients and enjoy!

Why RICE and BEANS as our Healthy recipe? Here are the benefits of eating this combination.

Benefits of rice
Rice is a source of complex carbohydrates, which are our primary source of energy. It also has all the amino acids your body needs to maintain and produce muscle tissue, antibodies, enzymes and hormones. It contributes to healthier skin, hair, eyesight, nervous system and blood vessels. Although many of the nutrients are washed out of white rice, brown rice retains all its vitamins. In the U.S., the vitamins are added back to white rice; this is sold as Enriched Rice. (Abuela’s tip: if you are cooking enriched rice, do not wash it before cooking you will take away the vitamins again). If you want to know the benefits different kinds of rice have click here ~different benefits for your body.

Benefits of beans
Beans are a great source of antioxidants, the darker the beans the higher the antioxidant level (go black beans!). They are also valued for their high protein content. Beans help our digestive system by keeping our colon functioning. They can reduce the risk of some cancers and heart problems. How you cook the beans makes a huge difference, given that canned beans contain preservatives and lots of salt. There’s an easy solution: get dry beans and make them in a pressure cooker or Crockpot.  Dry beans tend to be cheaper, and even though it takes a lot longer to make them, the over-cooking can help reduce the amount of gas beans produce in the intestines.

Benefits of combining rice and beans
Even though beans are considered an important source of protein, most vegetarian proteins are considered incomplete because they only contain some of the amino acids our body needs. Nevertheless, combining grains and legumes forms a complete protein that is also high in fiber. In that way, rice and beans can serve as a tasty meat replacement. There are other non-health benefits to eating rice and beans like cost, availability and variety.

Rice and beans are also a nice compliment to chicken or roast beef or pork, for those of you who still like to have your meat.

Also add a nice green salad or vegetable dish and you will have an amazing meal!

ENJOY!

Article 'Benefits of Rice and Beans' Source www.beinglatino.us/lifestyle/food-2

Here is our healthy recipe for the week.
Now that warmer weather is upon us, you won't want to make Banana Bread with those extra bananas. Instead you can freeze them up to a month for this recipe or use them fresh. Either way you will be enjoying a frozen healthy treat on those warmer days coming!


Banana Smoothie


2 cups of milk
1/2 cup sugar
3 banans - Fresh or Frozen
5 cups of ice


Blend in a high speed blender on medium for 1 min. than on high for 30 sec. or until ice is chopped fine and smooth


You can also make a variation on this recipe and change the 2 cups of milk to
1 cup of milk and
1 cup of orange juice
an orange - banana smoothie is really refreshing and delicious!


Also the 1/2 cup sugar can be substituted with 1/2 cup xilytol (a sugar substitute you can buy at the Good Earth in the bulk section) It has great health benefits for diabetics as well an ability to literally fight the bad bacteria in your mouth and reduce tartar.




ENJOY!